Gene Sarazen and the Masters
His Shot Heard Round the World Stamped It As A True Major
For all his accomplishments, Gene Sarazen will forever be linked to the Masters by one incredible shot - A double eagle that's been called golf's greatest shot ever.
Gene Sarazen was one of professional golf’s great early champions, winning 38 PGA Tour titles during his career. He was the first of only 4 players to win each of the 4 Majors, was a great ambassador for the game and even made contributions to it as an inventor.
Despite all of those accomplishments, Sarazen will forever be remembered for one remarkable shot – the “Shot Heard Round the World.” More than a great golf shot, it helped raise the fledgling Masters to new heights in the public consciousness, marking it as a true "Major.”
By 1935, Sarazen was in the twilight of his great career, having turned pro in 1918 at the age of 16. Meanwhile, the Masters (then called the Augusta National Invitational) was being contested for only the second time, although it already had been given the designation of a Major.
Completed the Career Grand Slam
Sarazen, who had won 2 U.S. Opens, 3 PGA titles and a British Open set his sights on completing the career Grand Slam. But as the tourney’s final round unfolded, Sarazen’s chances looked pretty slim. Teeing off at the par-5 15th, Sarazen trailed defending champion Craig Wood by 3 shots.
It was never a good idea to count Sarazen out, though. The Squire, as he was known because of his upstate New York farm, was famous for being able to boot home a winner when he sniffed the chance.
In 1932 he won the British Open with a then-record score of 283. Returning home, he put on one of the greatest-ever finishing charges in a Major. Playing the final 28 holes of the U.S. Open in a mere 100 strokes, Sarazen captured the title with a closing round 66 that stood as the tournament record until 1960.
The Greatest Shot in Golf History
Despite his well-earned reputation as a finisher, being down 3 with 4 to play at Augusta National is never an enviable position to be in. Still, Sarazen whacked his drive on the 15th straight down the fairway where it came to rest about 235 yards from the pin.
At 5-5 and 145 pounds Sarazen wasn’t a big man by any means. But he was known for a compact and ferocious swing that gave him great distance. So, with his 2nd shot, Sarazen stepped up and lashed a 4-wood straight at the pin. As if it had eyes, the ball rolled across the green and finally dropped for a double eagle – the rarest score in golf.
With one mighty wallop, Wood’s lead was erased. The pair finished their round tied, forcing a 36-hole playoff. From there, though, the outcome was never in doubt. The Squire won the playoff easily by 5 shots for the last Major title of his career.
Although he would later call the shot “lucky,” Sarazen’s spectacular double eagle captured the public’s imagination. The media popularized it as the “Shot Heard Round the World” and the Masters gained enough attention to lock it in as a true 4th Major.
Whether it was luck, skill or a bit of both, Gene Sarazen’s amazing double eagle put the Masters on the map and is still regarded by many as golf’s greatest single shot.
